Federal Rule Successfully Bans Smoking In Public Housing Residences Throughout The U.S.

This is a game-changing development that will no doubt cause an uproar.

Throughout the years it has become more and more clear that America is moving closer to a total ban on smoking nationwide. There are few public places that will allow you to smoke freely, as most are completely smoke-free. The latest ban on smoking is coming down from the federal government that has officially ruled that smoking of any kind is banned in all public housing residences throughout the country.

Banning smoking in all public housing residences is sure to cause a stir, as many may see it as being policed in their own home. The federal smoking ban will take effect in early 2017 and several million Americans will be affected by the new regulation. The Root has all the details of this controversial ruling, including the exact terms of the ban.

Via The Root:

A new federal rule announced Wednesday will ban smoking in all public housing residences nationwide. The new rule will take effect early next year, but public housing agencies could take up to a year and a half to fully implement the smoke-free policies. The rule would ban “cigarettes, cigars, pipes and hookahs (or water pipes)—but not electronic cigarettes—from being smoked in all living units, indoor common areas, administrative offices and all outdoor areas within 25 feet of housing and office buildings,” according to the New York Times.

While some 200,000 agencies across the country have already adopted a smoking ban, the rule could affect more than 1.2 million households around the country. Anti-smoking advocates were pleased to learn of the nationwide ban on smoking. For years they have pushed a campaign to stop exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke. Housing agencies believe that fines, education, counseling and nicotine aids will help enforce policies.

“The last thing that we want are evictions,” Julián Castro, secretary of housing and urban development, said during a call with reporters, the Times reports. “We don’t see this as a policy that is meant to end in a whole lot of evictions,” Castro said. “We’re confident that public-housing-authority staff can work with residents so that that can be avoided.”

This is surely not the last that you will hear about this new ruling, especially once community leaders and activists get wind of the situation. There are definitely pros and cons to this, but hopefully it is designed to help those who reside in public housing instead of hurt.